Some Jewish Witnesses For Christ
to England, where he was converted and baptized by the Rev. Dr. Bailey,
Principal of St. Aidan's College. He was afterwards prepared for
missionary work by the British Society, and laboured at Marseilles and
in Switzerland. He had the privilege of bringing two brothers to the
Saviour. He died in 1890.
BUZIN, Rev. Paul Theodor Ludwig, born in Clecko (Posen), was baptized in
Sagord (Isle of Rügen), by Pastor Ockel. He then studied at Basel, and
eventually became Pastor of a Lutheran Church in the United States.
CACHET, Rev. Lion, a Dutch Jewish merchant, embraced Christianity in
1849, then studied theology and went to South Africa in 1858. He
officiated as pastor in different churches at the Cape and in Natal, and
founded eight new congregations. In 1876 he became pastor of the
Netherland Reformed Church at Velliersdorf. He took a great interest in
missionary work among the Jews, which he promoted through the newspaper,
"Zuid Afrikaanische Stem voor en tot Israel."
CALMAN, Erasmus Scott, born in Lithuania, became a convert to
Christianity early in the nineteenth century. In 1839 he assisted
Nicolayson in his work in Jerusalem, travelling with him all over
Palestine, and being well received by the Jews. Later in life he took up
his residence in London. A friend having left him a large legacy to
enable him to work independently, he availed himself of just so much of
it as would meet the wants of the poorest pauper. He left the money
given him for his own comforts, probably with a large increase through
his savings, to trustees for the support of aged poor Hebrew Christians.
Calman was a learned as well as a good man, and published a treatise
entitled: "Some of the Errors of Modern Judaism contrasted with the Word
of God," and another entitled, "The Morrow of the Sabbath."
CANTONI, Giuseppi (Jacob), a Jew from Trieste, won for Christ by the
Rev. Lewis Way, was baptized in the Chapel of the Dutch Consul at
Smyrna, before a large congregation, in 1832.
CAPADOSE, Dr. Abraham, born at Amsterdam, 1795, of a Portuguese family,
died there December 16th, 1874. Here is his autobiography, which he sent
to his friend, Ridley Herschell, in London:--"I will no longer delay,
dear friends, to comply with your request that I would communicate in
writing the mode in which it pleased God to bring me to the knowledge of
Himself, and to lead me out of darkness into His marvellous light.
"Being deeply sensible that it was not of myself I sought after God, but
that my compassionate Lord came to seek me when I was lost, it would be
false modesty if I were now to withhold an account which, when verbally
communicated, interested and edified many dear friends, who therein
traced the great love of the Saviour towards a poor sinner like me, and
thus were led to ascribe all the glory to Him whose name is blessed for
evermore. May this glory be the only object I shall keep in view in this
account! Such is the sincere desire of my heart; and I ask of God to
guide my pen in truth and sincerity, that I may be kept from all
self-seeking, into which the necessity of speaking of myself might
betray me.
"Although I was by birth a Portuguese Israelite, I was by no means
zealous for the religion of my fathers. My education was rather moral
than religious; and though taught to hate vice, and to love what the
world calls virtue, I owe it entirely to the grace of God that at an
after period I was preserved from open impiety.
"At an early age I was captivated by science and literature. I was fond
of balls, plays, and every worldly amusement; but study afforded me
still greater satisfaction. I became acquainted with the works of
Voltaire and Rousseau at an early period of my life; but their false
principles, and still more, the frightful consequences of their system,
as exhibited before my eyes in the history of the French revolution,
preserved me, by the divine mercy, from their hurtful influence. My
parents having destined me for the medical profession, I considered it
my duty to acquire the knowledge requisite for this calling; but I felt
more inclination for the study of the theoretical sciences, and for
philosophic research.
"My friends were nearly all young men who made an outward profession of
Christianity; but the Lord had given me one friend among my near
relatives.[8] As we were both Israelites, and had been intimate from
childhood, our views on all subjects were very similar. (Dr. Capadose
here proceeds to state their intercourse with Bilderdyk, which is the
same as the account given by Da Costa, see page 172). The religious
element, if I may call it so, had not as yet entered into my soul. In my
early childhood, it is true, I had often felt an undefined need of
prayer; and when about nine years' old, had asked my parents to give me
a book of prayers, either in the French or Dutch language, that I might
understand them better.[9] I strongly urged my younger brothers and
sisters to the same practice; and this was the more remarkable as I had
very seldom seen any one engaged in prayer in my father's house. From
that time, amid all the changes of my outward life, I never omitted the
performance of this duty; and until my conversion to Christianity, it
constituted all my religious worship. The prayer I used ended with these
remarkable words:--'I wait for Thy salvation, O Lord!' I have preserved
the book containing it, and never look upon it without adoring the
goodness of that 'God of my salvation,' who has condescended to bestow
upon me, at a matured age, the blessing that the child of nine years'
old, hardly knowing what he asked, failed not to solicit from Him every
night before he lay down to rest.
[8] M. Da Costa.
[9] It is the general custom of the Jews to use the Hebrew language in
private as well as public prayer.
"During the period in which I was engaged in my studies, I occasionally
experienced very peculiar emotions. A poor woman used to sing psalms in
the street on Saturday evenings, to excite the compassion of the
passengers; and more than once have I left my books to listen to her,
overpowered by emotions which I could neither comprehend nor describe.
At the theatre also, when _Joseph in Egypt_ was represented, my tears
flowed at the sound of the morning prayer, which was imitated from the
Hebrew. At the synagogue, however, which, for the sake of decorum, I
still frequented, nothing had the least power to interest me. On the
contrary, the unmeaning ceremonies which appealed not to the heart, the
want of reverence, the bawling noise, the discordant singing, and
lastly, the employment of a language of which three-fourths of the
congregation did not understand a word, disgusted me so much, that I
ceased to attend it regularly, having always a great aversion to
hypocrisy.
"In the mean time, as if the tempter had foreseen what was afterwards to
take place, he induced my friend and myself to change our mode of life.
We disliked half measures, and could not endure the modern Judaism which
chooses at its pleasure to dispense with the requirements of the Mosaic
law; we therefore resolved to become Israelites indeed, rigidly
observing all the prescriptions of the law, and thus compelling
Christians to entertain a higher respect for the Jewish religion.
National pride was now our ruling motive. In this spirit, and with these
views, we began assiduously to read the Bible. But, oh! the shame and
wretchedness of the unconverted heart! We could not get beyond Genesis.
Constant ridicule and jesting, and oftentimes even blasphemy (Lord,
enter not into judgment with us!) were upon our lips instead of prayer;
so that I at length told my friend it was better to abandon our reading
altogether than to engage in it in such a manner.
"Thus our proposed plan vanished like smoke. My term of study was nearly
completed. This was in 1818. I took my degrees in medicine, left the
university, and returned to my native city Amsterdam, full of bright
prospects for the future. I had an uncle there, one of the first
physicians in Holland, a learned man, and highly esteemed by the
principal families. Having no children, he took me into his house and
adopted me as his son and successor. I was thus introduced at once to an
extensive circle of acquaintance; kind and respectable, it is true, but
with whom Christianity was a mere outward profession accompanied by an
entirely worldly life. None of these ever spoke to me on the subject of
Christianity. I have even heard some of my young friends make a boast of
their infidelity, and speak without reverence of the Lord Jesus Christ.
I once expressed my astonishment at this, and said, that though I did
not believe in Jesus, I thought that those who worshipped Him, and did
not consider Him to be God, were mere idolaters. A young physician who
was of the party, who was afterwards savingly converted to God, told me
some years after, how much ashamed he felt at the time, when receiving
such a reproof from an Israelite.
"In the midst of constant occupation, in the diligent pursuit of
scientific knowledge, I yet felt an aching void within. I had been
subject from childhood to an oppression of the chest, which made me pass
many sleepless nights; and in these hours of wakefulness I often
thought, 'Why am I upon the earth? Why was I created a man? Should I not
be a thousand times happier if I were one of the lower animals? I should
not then endure what I now suffer in my body and in my soul.' Often did
I cry out, 'O that this day were my last!' Yet I was not disquieted on
account of my sins, else I should have shuddered at the thought of
death; I was under the burden and curse of sin, without knowing it, or
seeking for the remedy.
"One day I went to pay a visit to my friend who had been lately married.
He had just received a letter from the celebrated professor already
mentioned. 'Would you like me to read it to you,' said he, 'together
with some beautiful verses he has addressed to me?' I gladly assented to
the proposal. The verses, in which he described, with power and feeling,
the glorious hopes of Israel, concluded with the words, 'Friend, be a
Christian, and I die content.' At these words, which he pronounced in an
under tone, my indignation was roused; my friend, it appeared to me, was
less shocked than he ought to have been. 'Take care,' said I, 'there is
a plan laid to seduce us.' I left him immediately.
"This occupied my thoughts all the rest of the day. I could not imagine
how a man of such profound learning could believe the Christian
religion. From that day, however, both my friend and myself began
attentively to examine the Word of God; and when we walked together we
conversed on those passages that had struck us most. Having begun with
the Gospel of Matthew, it was striking to me to perceive, that so far
from seeking to subvert the authority of the Old Testament, he made it
the basis whereon to build the Gospel of Christ.
"My friend and I spent several months in this way, becoming daily more
interested in our researches. At length, with thoughts and feelings very
different from those which formerly possessed us, we again determined to
read the Scriptures together. For this purpose we retired to a room in
my father's house; and I can never think without emotion on these
hallowed hours which we spent together, as in the presence of the God of
our fathers. Our interest increased as we proceeded. My mind, wearied
with vain speculations, now saw a new and boundless field open before
it, towards which it was irresistibly attracted; and thus before I had
ever heard of the electing love of God, I had experienced the power by
which He draws to Christ those souls whom He designs to bless. This
study of the word of God became at length the most urgent desire of my